A soft, sensual voice speaks over the radio to rebels in the jungles and mountains of Colombia, urging them to put down their weapons and rejoin society.
"We must surrender," murmurs the government-employed radio announcer known as the Flower of the Wilderness. "We must depend on our authorities, on the military institutions of our country."
The broadcasts are part of a major campaign by hardline President Alvaro Uribe to entice rebels to desert, while also squeezing them through military action and increased police presence in rural areas.
TV commercials feature first-person testimonies of others who have deserted, who say they have been well treated. Airdrops of leaflets proclaim: "Escape! Many of your companions have done it!"
Deserters are promised clothing, food, protection for themselves and their families and given the opportunity to change their identities. They also have access to health care, education and work training under the government's rehabilitation program.
Uribe's campaign has shown quick results. Since the beginning of this year, 640 insurgents, including leftist rebels and right-wing paramilitary fighters, have turned themselves in -- 40 percent more than the same period last year.
In a proposal to be presented to Congress in July, even deserting rebels accused of serious crimes would receive a form of government-monitored parole instead of prison sentences.
Let the rebels "divide themselves between those who will eternally remain professional bullies" and those who will surrender, Uribe said Friday at a military ceremony.
Part of the challenge is convincing the rebels they won't be tortured or killed if they turn themselves in -- which is what their commanders often tell them, said Vice Defense Minister Andres Penate, who is in charge of the US$12 million campaign.
In an interview late Thursday, Penate said about 20 percent of those who desert are younger than 18 and many are in their 20s and 30s.
Critics say this type of deserter is easy to replace and point out that the core leadership of the rebels remains intact.
Military analyst Alfred Rangel said that even if the trend of rebel desertions continues, it would take 27 years for the nation's main rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), to demobilize -- and only if there are no new recruits.
Nonetheless, many believe the increase in deserters -- especially those authorities say are high-ranking -- is demoralizing the high command of the FARC.
In April, Rafael Rojas, purportedly in charge of the FARC's 46th Front, turned himself in. Uribe interviewed Rojas on TV when the desertion was announced and urged other rebels to follow his lead.
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